TESTIMONIALS
"His music gives me astral goosebumps."
-Alex Grey, visionary painter & co-founder of CoSM
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"Stefan is the ideal studio collaborator. Over the past decade (longer in fact, but who's counting?), he and I have worked together in multiple contexts and on countless projects. During our time writing and recording together in Edensong, Stefan was a constant source of inspiration. He provided a seemingly endless stream of creative musical ideas, and helped me to push my own compositional and playing boundaries. Edensong demanded a lot technically, and Stefan always delivered with stunning technical proficiency. The sessions could be grueling at times and Stefan brought a strong work ethic and enthusiasm that enabled us to push through even the toughest challenges. Beyond this, he was an excellent bandmate, armed with strong musical opinions, defending his aesthetic principles, yet still willing to compromise in the pursuit of teamwork.
"During the course of my production and engineering work, I have frequently called Stefan into the studio as a session player and arranger, and he has always excelled and provided my clients precisely what they are after. He has an incredibly broad musical background, from classical, to jazz, to Latin, to rock/metal and pop. His tastes range from tight and straight-ahead to out and avant-garde, from simple and sparse to complex and dense, so it's hard to imagine a client throwing any music his way that he couldn't handle adeptly. He is a deep thinker, a sensitive and intuitive player, and an immediate asset to any project he touches."
-James Schoen, Edensong and JBS Recording
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"I first collaborated with Stefan Paolini in September of 2018. It was his supreme artistry in the rendition and arrangement of the well-known song Mad World, by Tears for Fears, which sparked my inspiration to choreograph a classical piece set to Mr. Paolini's musical tones. He not only rendered Mad World in its most exquisite piano version, but he composed and added sections to it that would place the work at a whole new level of beauty.
"Seldom have I been so immediately inspired and prompted to choreograph a dance, even across the many years of my professional experience with dance companies."
-Elisa Toro Franky, FJK Dance and Dardo Galletto Studios
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"Stefan Paolini is a very skilled keyboardist, and an equally skilled keyboard teacher. Open and honest, supportive and inspiring, his overall pragmatic personality creates a calm atmosphere, even amidst pressure and impending deadlines.
"Stefan keeps an open mind, especially in regard to genres of music. He is a very experienced musician, whose techniques can almost be considered a kind of musical rhetoric. I am grateful for all the valuable experience I have been given by this man not only in music, but in life."
-Nickolas Khimerik, student
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"Stef has been an incredible credit to my path as a musician. Since my first piano lesson in 2014, I have grown in tremendous ways. His knowledge and perspective in music and in life have been a great contribution to who I am as an artist. When working with him, he sees the strengths and challenges of how I learn and communicates them in a way that is comprehensive.
We have also collaborated through some musical projects of mine. It is a pleasure to work with him since he is easy to communicate with and understands quickly what I’m looking for. I am thankful to have worked with him in so many capacities."